Accessibility in the News – November 30, 2018

Accessibility in the News — November 30, 2018.

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National News (U.S.)

Just minutes before an accident involving a woman in a wheelchair that required the call of 911 placed a temporary halt to the City Council meeting at Greenfield Community Television, she made an impassioned speech for why her councilors needed to support the building of a new public library on the grounds of accessibility. “Only use the routes that are handicap accessible,” Joanna Whitney said. “What message does that send community members like me who are limited by this route? Will they still feel welcomed and valued in Greenfield?”…

Try These Surprisingly Simple Ways To Help Shoppers With Disabilities This Season

What do customers with disabilities want more than anything? To be treated like people first, people who also happen to have a disability. As we begin the holiday dash, these suggestions on everything from etiquette to online fixes for businesses—developed for and by people with disabilities—are worth sharing widely. Many of the suggestions. below, are not costly or complicated to implement and include both what is required by law as well as how to go beyond the basics…

How to make sure your events are accessible

Exotic or unusual locations may not cater to the specialist needs of individual guests, says Melissa Hirst of CT Group Travel. Clients requesting unusual locations and venues is nothing new but a quirky venue in an off-the-beaten-track destination doesn’t always lend itself to maximising accessibility. “In recent years, we’re seeing more and more adventurous or outlandish locations suggested by clients for their events that can be, logistically speaking, rather tricky for event managers to coordinate,” says Melissa Hirst, marketing manager at CT Group Travel…

Revelations in a Wheelchair

I’m a documentary photographer who was raised in California and now lives in New York, and I sometimes feel I’ve already lived two lives — but not because of the changes in geography I’ve experienced. A little more than two years ago, when I was 23, I suffered a spinal cord injury while cliff diving on the Yuba River in Northern California. In a matter of seconds, I became disabled. I was mostly paralyzed from the waist down, and began using a wheelchair. The doctors could not guarantee that I would walk again, but I persevered…

Complying with disabilities act will take Cedar Rapids longer

Compliance with the 1992 Americans with Disabilities Act is proving to be a lesson in patience and precision for city officials, construction contractors, project designers and others. The single biggest line item in a four-year settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice to make city of Cedar Rapids public facilities accessible for all has been installing or replacing 3,800 curb ramps to meet federal standards. Minor deviations from the specifications can torpedo a project…

Autism prevalence now 1 in 40 US kids, study estimates

A survey of parents across the United States estimates that one in 40 children has autism spectrum disorder, according to a study published Monday in the journal Pediatrics. In other words, the condition was reported in 2.5% of children, representing an estimated 1.5 million kids ages 3 to 17. A report released this year by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated the prevalence at one in 59 children or about 1.7%, based on 2014 data…

‘Checking Out’ Online Shopping For Accessibility

Cyber Monday deals now span an entire week. Black Friday deals begin early Thursdays, and now exist online, too. Truly, the whole shopping game has changed. It seems every week hear about a large retailer restructuring their offerings—whether through closure of physical store locations or expanding their online presence. If online commerce is supposed to make the very act of shopping more accessible by expanding its presence to anyone with an internet connection, then the accessibility for users with disabilities must be factored into that web design…

Accessibility in education: achievements and challenges

Accessibility is an essential subject on education these days, the biggest tech companies like Apple, Google and Microsoft know that. They have worked extensively to make more and better products that can lead to a more inclusive learning experience. In 2017 Microsoft launched a course for teachers, that guides them to use Microsoft Office’s tools to make the learning resources accessible for everyone. Apple has developed text to speech apps, compatible with educational platforms…

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced last week that it plans to reverse a controversial March provision that encouraged investigators to dismiss multiple complaints from the same source, according to Education Week. In addition to reversing the contentious “mass-filers” recommendation, OCR has pledged to conduct investigations into complaints that were dismissed over the past nine months because of the change. In May, after OCR announced the change to its case-processing manual, the Council for Parent Advocates and Attorneys, the NAACP, and…

Instagram’s New Text To Speech Accessibility Feature Will Help You Connect On The App

Instagram is about to get a lot more accessible, thanks to a brand new feature that appeared on the social media platform on Wednesday, Nov. 28. Months after revealing that 1 billion users now use the image and video-sharing service, Instagram is taking a page from Facebook (Instagram’s parent company) and Twitter’s book by introducing a feature geared towards people with visual impairments. Instagram’s new text to speech accessibility feature is so similar to Facebook’s Al, and it will help you better connect on the app…

What about DC taxis’ accessibility?

The Nov. 25 Commuter article “Wheelchair-accessible Uber service coming to D.C. and five other cities” was not quite deserving of an applause line. London taxis have been accessible for years. In 2013, New York City mandated that 50 percent of taxis be accessible by 2020. That passed legal hurdles and, by early this year, delivered 13-minute wait times (subsidized, too) and extended into boroughs outside Manhattan. Those are established best practices. While the District, proportionately, has more taxis per resident, few are accessible…

U.Va. works towards accessibility on Lawn with addition of ramps

The construction of two permanent, wheelchair-accessible ramps on the western side of the Lawn will be completed by the start of the spring semester, according to U.Va. officials. The ramps — part of the Lawn Accessibility Project — will provide a continuous and obstruction-free path from the Rotunda to Old Cabell Hall for students and visitors with mobility impairments. The project will cost approximately $974,000, according to James Zehmer, a historic preservation…

Q&A: Tom Livne on how AI-Enabled Tools Can Help Boost Accessibility on Campus

According to Tom Livne, CEO of AI transcription tool Verbit, smart assistants and artificial intelligence-enabled tools on campus are trends on the horizon that universities will want to pay attention to in order to stay ahead of the curve. Higher education institutions have been witnesses to a digital revolution, phasing out tools of the past for technology integrations that have improved their offerings for students and faculty on campus. The rate at which technological innovations are moving is rapid…

Playboy.com Sued by Blind Man Who Says He Can’t Fully ‘Enjoy’ the Website

Apparently, some people really do read Playboy for the articles. Or at least try to. Playboy.com was sued Wednesday by a legally blind man who says that the site, as well as Playboyshop.com, aren’t equally accessible to the blind and visually impaired. In the class-action suit, filed Wednesday in federal court in New York, Donald Nixon says that he and other visually-impaired customers are unable to “fully and equally use or enjoy” the site’s offering. And that definitely goes on the Turn-Offs list…

Spyro Fails Its Audience Without Subtitles

The Spyro Reignited Trilogy was an obvious attempt to take the series back to its roots. Like the Crash Bandicoots N. Sane Trilogy, it is a loving remaster of the original games for current consoles for both nostalgic oldies and younger players who missed out. After the rise and fall of Spyro’s Skylander franchise, Activision wanted to recapture the audience of the original series. Unfortunately, in remaking the original games, it forgot one thing: the subtitles. Subtitles are an important aspect of so many games, and by not including them, Toys for Bob and Activision have let down their fans…

A Case for Inclusive Design

When I began my architectural career, practitioners were still coming to terms with the American Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. The civil rights law and its accompanying accessibility guidelines (ADAAG) brought profound changes to the design of many components in the built environment, including circulation systems, restrooms, and signage. Although the ADA’s goal to ensure more equitable access in and around buildings was common sense, not all architects appreciated the prescribed changes. One of my supervisors even compared the newly mandated dimensions for accessible bathroom stalls to a football field…

Jack Fact — According to data from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey compiled by the University of New Hampshire only 37.7 percent of people with disabilities are employed in Massachusetts, compared to 80.2 percent of people without disabilities — a gap of 42.5 percentage points (which is slightly higher than the national gap of 40.2 percentage points). It places Massachusetts 40th out of 50 states.

International News

Architects: Ordinances needed to support Accessibility Law

Local government units must come up with ordinances to support the Accessibility Law, according to a group of Filipino architects. The United Architects of the Philippines held on Friday an “accessibility audit training” among architects, engineers and municipal planning officers in this capital town. It was aimed at strengthening the implementation of Batas Pambansa 344, or the Accessibility Law. Everyone – not just persons with disabilities – should advocate for accessibility, Architect Rix Abordo said…

BC government shifting accessible parking requirements to local governments

A big change to B.C.’s building code is raising concerns over the future of accessible parking in the province. Starting Dec. 10, the province will remove the requirement for accessible parking at residential and commercial buildings from the 2018 building code, and shift the responsibility to municipalities. The Ministry of Housing says the switch will improve accessibility, particularly at retail stores and condo and apartment buildings, by allowing local governments to set their own standards…

AI, meet accessibility – new potential for upping skilled employment

First, a statement of the blindingly obvious: many less able bodied people face a multitude of barriers that the abled blithely traverse without a thought. Activities such as getting the train, getting the bus, going into a house or other building, about going shopping, and huge range of possible social interactions. All of those barriers get multiplied if disabled people then want to get a job. Yet getting a job is an obvious benefit for a disabled person – and not just in terms of money. It also counts hugely in terms of self-esteem and self-worth in a world that is often set against them…

At the Games Accessibility Conference, 2018

A shift is occurring in the games industry. It’s called the Accessibility Revolution. The awareness and application of accessibility in games has grown exponentially. Developers around the world are making long overdue ventures into this hidden field to create an inclusive sanctuary in which everybody is able to play the games they want to play. The GA Conference EU 2018, held in Paris on the 22nd of October, brought passionate disabled gamers together with developers to discuss the present and the future state of accessibility. The first two GA Conferences had been held in the US…

Oxford’s accessibility crisis

Less than a third of departments responded to an internal survey designed to assess compliance with University disability policy, Cherwell can reveal. The survey was conducted by Student Welfare and Support Services (SWSS) in Hilary Term 2018 as part of the University’s Common Framework for Disability. Overall, 30.8% of departments responded, with a total of 36 departments failing to comply. The news follows the release of an Oxford SU report on the accessibility of Oxford libraries released on Wednesday…

Advancing accessibility in all areas of society

The moment was solidified and then bolstered when Dr. Chan won a CREATE grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada worth $1.65-million over six years. In addition to the much-needed funds, the grant, awarded in May 2017, also brought recognition to Dr. Chan’s research and development. His philosophy espouses design solutions imparted at the beginning of a project, as opposed to retrofitted, and encompasses physical as well as mental health issues, including autism and Asperger syndrome…

Voiceless disabled persons plead at SC for speedy redress

In hearing a nationally and internationally important Fundamental Rights public interest litigation filed by Accessibility Rights Activist Dr. Ajith C.S. Perera, the Supreme Court has granted leave to proceed for violation of the Petitioner’s Fundamental Rights guaranteed in terms of Articles 12(1), 12(4), 14(1)(g) and 14(1)(h) of the Constitution and has fixed this case for Argument on 29 November next, thus confirming that it is a fit and proper case to be pursued…

Carlisle Racecourse publishes Detailed Accessibility Guide

Carlisle Racecourse has become one of the first sporting venues in Britain to give disabled people and carers a Detailed Accessibility Guide on its facilities via AccessAble, the UK’s leading provider of access information. The initiative follows extensive site visits to all 15 of the Jockey Club’s racecourses and its historic Jockey Club Rooms in Newmarket. The online guides are available via the Carlisle Racecourse, Jockey Club and AccessAble websites and analyse facilities ranging from car parking spaces and viewing ramps to hearing loops and lighting levels…

In the past few years UBC has welcomed several new sport and recreation facilities — from the innovative Aquatic Centre to the 8,000-square-foot ARC fitness centre — as it strives to meet a critical need for recreation space on campus. With the new buildings comes the addition of improved accessibility features ranging from ramps to powered doors, elevators and an aquatic lift. But the reality is that UBC’s aging sport facilities may never meet the physical accessibility standards of newer buildings, according to Kavie Toor, UBC Rec senior director of facilities, recreation and sport partnerships…

Rīga’s Central Station in a wheelchair: poor accessibility, drunk helpers

Her experience of an out-of-service wheelchair lift and drunk employees as she travels on the Rīga – Jelgava route each week sheds light on what many already knew: in Latvia, EU requirements over disabled access to trains are, at best, met to the bare minimum. Karina suffered in a crash and has been using a wheelchair for the past 14 years. She works as a cook at a vegan restaurant in Rīga and makes professional food photos. “I am not a lazy do-nothing using up social benefits and complaining thereafter…

Builders criticised for lobbying against accessible homes

Private housebuilders have been accused of “appalling self-interest” over their lobbying against building more accessible homes for disabled residents. The Home Builders Federation (HBF) has been objecting to councils across England that wish to fix new targets to increase the number of homes with room for wheelchair users and which could be adaptable. It has made submissions to at least 17 authorities, from Liverpool to Sevenoaks, arguing that new local planning policies seeking more accessible housing could make it unprofitable to build new homes…

GDS to publish model statement on website accessibility

It is part of the effort to support public authorities in meeting the accessibility regulation for websites and apps that is due to come into force in September of next year. A blogpost by Anthony Ilona, policy engagement manager at GDS, says the model statement has been tested with users to ensure it is clearly understood and meets user needs, and that template will be published on GOV.UK in the new year. He also urges public sector bodies to begin testing their websites for user accessibility soon to have the information required to complete an accessibility statement…

More than 40% of train stations ‘cannot be used by some disabled passengers’

More than 1,000 railway stations in Britain cannot be used by some disabled passengers, research suggests. Over 40% of the country’s 2,560 stations do not have full step-free access, according to analysis of Office of Rail and Road data by charity Leonard Cheshire. It claims this is “barring disabled people from travelling independently”. The charity warned that many disabled people face difficulties planning journeys due to unclear information about station accessibility…

During National Consumer Week and the busiest shopping season of the year, Citizens Advice is calling on retailers to work with parcel operators to make it easier for disabled people to make their delivery needs known. The charity found almost 1 in 3 disabled people missed a delivery because they weren’t given enough time to get to the door. It found 1 in 4 postal service users who are disabled say they feel rushed, anxious or irritated when accepting deliveries at home…

Many face cloudy future over cataracts

School days should be a cheerful time for nine-year-olds. For Baraka Lakoria, despite seeking learning with diligence, every morning brought misery due to the unending haziness in his eyes. It didn’t help that he sat under the teacher’s nose. Craning his neck to copy notes from the blackboard became frustrating as the cloudiness in his eyes increased and he became reliant on his deskmate’s notes. Most times, he was not fast enough. He became introverted and fearful to actively participate in class and was later diagnosed with cataracts…

‘It’s shocking to see such a stark disparity’

Workers with sight loss are significantly less likely to be employed full time compared to their sighted counterparts, according to research from Vision Australia, the Blind Foundation of New Zealand, and the CNIB Foundation. The study looked at blind and partially sighted adults across three countries, finding Australia had the lowest full-time employment rate at 24%, followed by Canada at 28% and New Zealand at 32%. However, the full-time employment rate among the general public in these countries, in some cases, is nearly double that…

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